Ten Canyons on or near Navajoland - Part 1

Ten Canyons on or near Navajoland - Part 1

By Helen Serras-Herman

There are ten canyons in northern Arizona with spectacular landscapes, bursting with Native American history, ancient petroglyphs, mining chronicles and legacies, stories and legends. Some are located within the Navajo and Hualapai Nations Reservations, while others, mostly the National Parks and Monuments, are situated just outside the reservations’ boundaries.

Monument Valley

The panoramic scenery can be spellbinding at Monument Valley; The Mitten Butte is an iconic landmark.

Monument Valley is located on the Navajo Reservation in the northeast corner of Arizona and southern Utah, at 5,564 feet elevation. It is known by the Navajo people, who prefer to be called Diné, as “Valley of the Rocks”. The Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park was established in 1957. 

Monument Valley is famous for its towering sandstones, mesas, and buttes, formed by wind and water erosion during the past 50 million years. Their famous bright red coloration is due to iron oxide exposed in the weathered siltstone. Depending on the time of day, sun, shadows, and scenic clouds, especially during the summer monsoon rainy season, the scenery can be spellbinding. Standing on the high mesas, besides the renowned panorama views featured in many photographs and western movies, an eerie silence with only the wind whistling between the buttes, chimes the ancient history of rocks and people.

The best way to appreciate Monument Valley is by guided tour with Navajo guides. Monument Valley is one of the most majestic and magical places my husband and I have ever visited, once during the August summer monsoon season and another time in snowy December. The reverence with which the Navajo guides approach the sites is etched in my mind.  

The Mitchell Mesa Mine was a small uranium-vanadium mine located on Mitchell Mesa. The mine was exploited between 1965 and 1966, when all mining ceased there (AZ Geological Survey, 1965).

The Merrick Butte at Monument Valley is named after prospector Jack Merrick, who found silver in 1863.

In 1879 the silver mine known as Navajo Pishlaki Mine, became the center of a legend. Two army soldiers, Jack Merrick and Ernest Mitchell, who in 1863 had served under Army Col. Kit Carson relocating the Navajo people and had admired the Navajo jewelry, returned as prospectors to search for a rich silver mine. They collected silver ores, but the Navajo warned them to leave the land and never return. Ignoring their warning, the miners returned in 1880, and resumed collecting silver specimens. They were attacked and Merrick was killed instantly, while Mitchell was wounded and killed the next day. When the investors’ posse came to Monument Valley, the Navajos led them to the prospector’s graves, but denied the killings, and said that a Paiute renegade band killed them. The posse found rich silver ore samples next to Mitchell’s body.

 The Mitchell Butte at Monument Valley is the second butte named after silver mining prospector Ernest Mitchell.

Even though Navajos admit that silver mines do exist within Monument Valley, the silver mine’s location remains secret and a mystery. Since no mining or rockhounding is permitted in Monument Valley, the legend lives on. For information and tour reservations visit www.navajonationparks.org/tribal-parks/monument-valley/

This turquoise brooch by Navajo artist Jasper Wilson is probably similar to the jewelry Merrick and Mitchell admired on the Navajos.

Mystery Valley

The area known as Mystery Valley is located along the southern portion of the Monument Valley Tribal Park, accessible only by a four-hour Navajo guided tour. Mystery Valley is dotted with low lying rock formations and arches compared to Monument Valley's iconic buttes. Mystery Valley gets its name from unique petroglyphs carved by the Anasazi people who lived there over 700 years ago. At the many Anasazi ruins up in the coves the Navajo guide stayed at a distance in respect to the spirits of their ancestors living there.

 Mystery Valley is dotted with low lying rock formations and arches.

Grand Canyon National Park South Rim

The Grand Canyon National Park is situated just outside the Navajo Reservation in northern Arizona. John Wesley Powell — the American geologist and explorer of the West— described the Grand Canyon in 1868 as “the best geological section on the continent”. The Grand Canyon was established first as a National Monument in 1908 by Theodore Roosevelt and as National Park in 1919. The wondrous geology and vast vistas are famous around the world.

The wondrous geology and vast vistas of the Grand Canyon are famous around the world.

The Orphan Mine Site is located approximately two miles northwest of the Grand Canyon Village. In 1893, prospector Dan Hogan found copper1500 feet below the rim. The Orphan Mine Claim was patented in 1906. It contained more than two acres extending from approximately 500 feet south of the rim to approximately 1,100 feet below the South Rim.

In 1893, copper was found 1500 feet below the rim at the Orphan Mine, but from 1951 to 1966 it was mined for uranium.

In 1959 a vertical hoisting mineshaft supported by a headframe was used to haul ore, personnel, and materials at the Orphan Mine.

In the early 20th century the claim produced small amounts of copper and other metals.  In 1951, geologists discovered high-grade uranium deposits and by 1956 a private mining company had purchased the Orphan claim to develop a uranium mine. They built many structures and an aerial tram system for hauling ore. To increase uranium production, in 1959 the tram was replaced by a vertical hoisting mineshaft supported by a headframe, used to haul ore, personnel, and materials. By 1969 the high-grade ore was mined out and mining seized, ending completely in 1988 when the National Park Service (NPS) gained ownership. The thirteen-year uranium mining resulted in the presence of mine waste, leaving the NPS with the responsibility to clean-up the site.

Rich copper ore was mined at the Last Chance Mine on Horseshoe Mesa from 1890 to 1907.

Another mine within the Grand Canyon was the Last Chance Mine at Grandview Point, after prospector Pete Berry staked a copper claim in 1890, 3,000 feet below the rim on Horseshow Mesa. The mine began a 17-year activity, thriving for a while because the ore was rich. Ore from the Last Chance Mine claimed a World’s Fair prize in Chicago in 1893 for being 70% pure copper. Mules and burros packed everything in and packed out 200 pounds of ore per day. But the high cost of packing ore to the rim and shipping it to be refined, made the operation unprofitable, leading Berry and his partners to sell the mine in 1901. The new owners continued mining, but all ceased when copper prices plunged in 1907.

Although mining on Horseshoe Mesa was short-lived, it made Grandview Point Grand Canyon’s most popular tourist area. The first-class Grandview Hotel was built in 1897, but closed in 1913. The Grandview Trail, built by the miners to reach their mines, now serves thousands of hikers each year.

Twenty three miles east of the Grand Canyon Village visitors reach the unique 70-foot tall Desert View Watchtower, built in 1932 by American architect Mary Jane Colter. Inside are amazing murals created by Hopi painter Fred Kabodie; there is also a small alcove with local minerals and fossils display. The top floor offers the most panoramic views of the Grand Canyon.

For Grand Canyon visitor information https://www.nps.gov/grca/index.htm  

One of our most gratifying adventures ever was to take the grand tour with a helicopter over Grand Canyon West.

Grand Canyon West

The Grand Canyon West is at the far western part of the Grand Canyon, situated on the Hualapai Nation Reservation. It is 79 miles north of Kingman, Arizona, and takes about 1.5 hours to drive. The entire road is now paved, which was not the case when we visited. All tours are organized and accompanied by Hualapai guides. One of our most gratifying adventures ever was to take the grand tour with a helicopter over Grand Canyon West, then descend 3,500 to the canyon floor and land on the bank of the Colorado River; then float for a while on a pontoon boat, and return via the helicopter.

The famous Grand Canyon Skywalk is a 10-feet wide glass bridge extending 70 feet out over the West Rim, 4000 feet above the canyon floor.

The famous Grand Canyon Skywalk is a 10-feet wide glass bridge extending 70 feet out over the West Rim, 4000 feet above the canyon floor. The Skywalk is a horseshoe-shaped cantilever bridge with a glass walkway at Eagle Point. Before you can access the Skywalk, you must store your personal belongings, including but not limited to cell phones, cameras, purses, backpacks, and water bottles, in a free locker. Shoes are required, and booties are used to protect the glass. Professional photographers are on hand to take pictures. We visited in May 2007 shortly after the Skywalk opened in March 2007, and completed our memorable visit with a stay at the western-style Cabins at Grand Canyon West. For several ticket options and reservations visit www.grandcanyonwest.com

Helen Serras-Herman, a 2003 National Lapidary Hall of Fame inductee, is an acclaimed gem sculptor with 40 years of experience in unique gem sculpture and jewelry art. See her work at www.gemartcenter.com and her business Facebook page at Gem Art Center/Helen Serras-Herman

All photos by Helen Serras-Herman & Andrew Herman